Are epigenetic modifications of key genes in placenta important links between mother’s lifestyle and fetal pre- and postnatal growth patterns and future diabetes risk?
Background:
In utero exposures are possible mediators of risk for obesity, type 2 diabetes and cardiovascular disease in adulthood, by modulating placental function and early life development and growth.
Aims:
Our aim is to examine if variations methylation of growth-related hormones and morphology in placental tissue mediates effects of maternal factors on offspring growth from mid pregnancy until pre-school age.
Methods:
High quality maternal data collected from pregnancy, birth and postpartum and later routine anthropometric measurements of the children in the STORK-Groruddalen cohort is used. Placental epigenetic modifications are assessed using Formaline-Fixed-Paraffine-Embedded placental (FFPE) tissue.
News from 2022:
A pilot test of genome-wide metylation analyses (n=8) has been performed, with promising results. Analyses in a larger sample (n=96) has now started. Two papers exploring 1) the associations between maternal metabolic factors- and placental size and phenotype and 2) the potential mediating role of placental anthropometry on the associations between of maternal metabolism on offspring body composition at birth, is in progress.